【PBA】　PBA World Championship　【Match Play】

England’s Dom Barrett Wins No. 1 Berth for PBA World Championship Finals

Rash, Fagan, Smallwood, Weber Advance in Thrilling Position Round

England’s Dom Barrett used memories of a disappointing performance a year earlier to propel himself into the top qualifying position for the Professional Bowlers Association World Championship stepladder finals field Thursday at South Point Bowling Center.

Barrett, 28, who won his only PBA Tour title in the 2011 Scorpion Championship, put lessons learned in last year’s World Championship to work Thursday. After momentarily surrendering the lead to reigning PBA Player of the Year Sean Rash of Montgomery, Ill., he won five of his final eight matches to clinch the No. 1 berth in the finals by 169 pins over Rash. Barrett averaged 236.40 over 52 games of World Series qualifying and match play to finish with a 12,713 pinfall total. Rash posted a 12,544 total.

Mike Fagan of Fort Worth, Texas, qualified third with 12,304 pins; 2010 World Champion Tom Smallwood of Saginaw, Mich., earned the fourth spot with a thrilling final game, and 37-time PBA Tour champion Pete Weber of St. Ann, Mo., locked up the fifth spot by 27 pins over fellow PBA50 Tour competitor Tom Baker of King, N.C., despite Baker’s 276-239 win over Australia’s Jason Belmonte in the final match.

The battle for the final two spots in the finals was settled when Smallwood threw 11 consecutive strikes after an open in the first frame to defeat Mika Koiviuniemi of Hartland, Mich., 279-189, while Weber defeated Fagan, 268-238, to hold onto his place in the top five.

Weber also is in the hunt for the first PBA Player of the Year award in his 33-year career.

“I just tried to stay focused and not get too excited,” the 51-year-old Weber said. “People don’t think this is hard work? Please come out and try it.”

Regarding his chances for Player of the Year, he said, “You’ve got to be in the top five to have a shot at winning. I came into the (PBA World Series of Bowling V) thinking if I could win two tournaments, I would have a legitimate shot at Player of the Year. I know Belmo (Australia’s Jason Belmonte) is out front right now, but if I can win a second major, I’ll have a chance.”

Weber won the PBA Tournament of Champions in April for his 10th career major championship, tying the legendary Earl Anthony for the most PBA major titles. He will have to win four matches, including a victory over Barrett, to win an 11th major.

“The last round happened the way I hoped it would,” Barrett said. “I had a good round today. I knew Sean (Rash) was going to have a good day, so to come in today with all of the experience I got last year helped a lot.

“Last year I was leading going into the last eight games and dropped from first to 10th. To come in this year in the same position, I don’t think I could have bowled any better. Like any great athlete, I think you learn more from failures than success. I know what that felt like and today I controlled my emotions, how I was feeling and I got myself into the best position I could to execute shots.”

But Barrett wasn’t about to predict victory in Sunday’s finals.

“I won the Scorpion title on the same lanes, in the same arena, two years ago so I know what to expect,” he said. “I’ve got 10 more frames. I’ll bowl the best I can and hope it’s enough.”

The World Championship stepladder finals will take place Sunday at 12:30 p.m. PT on a special two-lane installation in South Point Exhibition Hall B. ESPN will air the finals on Sunday, Dec. 29, at 1 p.m. ET. First prize in the 2012-13 season’s final major championship is $50,000.

　【PBA】　PBA World Championship　【Match Play Round 2】

England’s Barrett Retains Lead after Opening Match Play Round in PBA World Championship

England’s Dom Barrett retained a 99-pin lead over reigning Player of the Year Sean Rash of Montgomery, Ill., after the two rounds of match play in the Professional Bowlers Association World Championship Wednesday at South Point Bowling Center.

Barrett, who entered the 24-game match play finals as the top qualifier after 28 games bowled in four animal pattern tournaments earlier in the PBA World Series of Bowling V program, won nine of his first 16 matches to finish the sixth round with a 44-game total of 10,649 pins, including match play bonus pins. He held off a charge by Rash, who averaged 252.62 in winning all eight of his matches in the morning round and finished the day with a 14-2 match play record and a 10,550 pinfall total.

With eight more match games to go Thursday to determine the top five players for the stepladder finals, Barrett and Rash have distanced themselves from the field. Mike Fagan of Fort Worth, Texas, was in third place with 10,282 pins, 268 pins behind Rash; 21-year-old rookie E.J. Tackett of Huntington, Ind., was fourth with a 10,266 total and 2010 World Champion Tom Smallwood of Saginaw, Mich., was fifth with a 10,249 total. Four other players were less than 100 pins behind Smallwood in the race for the top five.

“Sean bowled well this morning. I didn’t bowl bad, but it just shows how good these guys are for him to make a move like that (from 12th to second),” Barrett said. “I put my striking shoes on tonight and had a really good round. I think we are pretty much locked into the top two, but I want to go for the top seed tomorrow. That’s very important.”

Barrett, 28, won his only PBA Tour title in the 2011 Scorpion Championship. He also has qualified No. 1 for this weekend’s Chameleon Championship finals, but the World Championship is the prize everyone bowling in the PBA World Series of Bowling V wants to win.

“Winning the World Championship would be a dream, but I have a lot more work to do,” he said. “One thing you can’t do is take anything for granted with these guys. I can’t do anything more than bowl the best I can. I’ve had a good week so far, so I’ll just try to keep it going.”

The World Championship stepladder finals will take place Sunday at 12:30 p.m. PT on a special two-lane installation in South Point Exhibition Hall B. ESPN will air the finals on Sunday, Dec. 29, at 1 p.m. ET. First prize in the 2012-13 season’s final major tournament is $50,000.

The final match play round will be covered live on PBA’s Xtra Frame online bowling channel Thursday at 2 p.m. PT, and via “live scoring” on pba.com. For daily, monthly or yearly subscriptions to Xtra Frame, click on the Xtra Frame link on the pba.com home page.

　【PBA】　Scorpion Championship　【Round of 24】

Collegiate Star Marshall Kent Earns Top Berth for PBA Scorpion Championship Finals

Two-time Collegiate Bowler of the Year Marshall Kent of Yakima, Wash., the only amateur in the field, won the top berth for the stepladder finals of the Professional Bowlers Association’s Scorpion Championship Tuesday at South Point Bowling Center.

Kent, a student at Robert Morris University-Illinois in Chicago, averaged 227.79 for 14 games on the Scorpion lane condition, finishing with a 3,189 pinfall total to claim the top rung in the stepladder finals by 12 pins over 2012 PBA World Champion Tom Smallwood of Saginaw, Mich. Josh Blanchard of Gilbert, Ariz., qualified third with a 3,162 total and Tommy Jones of Simpsonville, S.C., earned the fourth spot in the finals with 3,146 pins, 23 ahead of three-time PBA50 Player of the Year Tom Baker of King, N.C.

Blanchard and Jones, bowling on the same pair of lanes, rolled matching 269 final games to earn their shots at the title. The Scorpion Championship finals will take place on Saturday, Nov. 2, at 7 p.m. ESPN will air the finals on Sunday, Dec. 22, at 1 p.m. ET. The Scorpion Championship was the fourth of five PBA Tour events that compose the PBA World Series of Bowling.

Kent, who finished fourth in Bowling’s U.S. Open in July, was invited to bowl in the World Series on a PBA Commissioner’s Exemption because he is still in college.

Earlier Tuesday, England’s Dom Barrett led the field of 24 players who advanced to the PBA World Championship round-robin match play finals Wednesday and Thursday based upon combined 28-game qualifying pinfall totals from the Cheetah, Viper, Chameleon and Scorpion rounds. Barrett averaged 237.67 in compiling a 6,655 pinfall total for 28 games, topping Wes Malott of Pflugerville, Texas, by 209 pins. Maldonado qualified third with 6,405 pins.

The match play rounds of the PBA World Championship Wednesday and Thursday will be covered live on PBA’s Xtra Frame online bowling channel, and via “live scoring” on pba.com. For daily, monthly or yearly subscriptions to Xtra Frame, click on the Xtra Frame link on the pba.com home page.

日本から参戦の斉藤茂雄は32位で$700獲得。
Pat Nolan 52位、川添奨太 61位、小林哲也 91位、Robert Lee 110位、吉田文啓 111位、吉田樹弐亜 159位。

　【PBA】　Chameleon Championship　【Round of 24】

“Over the Moon” Barrett Advances from Sixth Place to Claim No. 1 Berth for Chameleon Championship Finals

England’s Dom Barrett advanced from sixth place to first Monday night, claiming the No. 1 berth in the Professional Bowlers Association’s Chameleon Championship stepladder finals at South Point Bowling Center, the third of five events that compose the PBA World Series of Bowling V.

Barrett, who won his only PBA Tour title in the 2011 Scorpion Championship, will lead a field of four into the Chameleon Championship finals on Saturday, Nov. 2. ESPN will air the finals on Sunday, Dec. 15, at 1 p.m. ET. Also winning berths in the championship round were Brian Kretzer of Dayton, Ohio; Ryan Ciminelli of Cheektowaga, N.Y., and 2010 PBA World Champion Tom Smallwood of Saginaw, Mich.

Barrett rolled the only 300 game in the semifinal round Monday night, finishing with a 14-game total of 3,246 pins to win the top seat in the stepladder finals by 13 pins over Kretzer, who also is a one-time PBA Tour title winner. Ciminelli, who earned the top berth in the Viper Championship presented by PBA Bowling Challenge Sunday night, is the first player in World Series V to qualify for two telecasts. Smallwood won the fourth spot by four pins over Patrick Allen of Wesley Chapel, Fla., who earlier in the round called a foul on himself, costing him a place in the stepladder finals.

“It was a great run, perfect, couldn’t have worked out better,” Barrett said. “I won my title on the old Scorpion pattern, which is very similar to the new Chameleon lane condition, and it really matched up well to my game. I used the knowledge I’ve gotten from bowling in this center before and it helped me a lot.

“I’m over the moon,” he said with a grin. “I’ve bowled the best this week that I’ve ever bowled in my life, and this is the World Series, the biggest event there is. I had a couple of down moments in (the Viper Championship semifinal round) last night, but I went to bed, thought about it and woke up with a new attitude.”

Barrett went into the Viper semifinal round Sunday night as the tournament leader, but fell to 13th place by the end of the round.

Earlier Monday, the field of 235 players completed the third of four qualifying rounds for the PBA World Championship. The combined seven-game qualifying scores from the four animal pattern tournaments – Cheetah, Viper, Chameleon and Tuesday’s Scorpion Championship – will determine the top 24 players who will advance to World Championship round-robin match play on Wednesday and Thursday. After the Chameleon round, Barrett led World Championship qualifying with 5,046 pins, followed by Wes Malott of Pflugerville, Texas, with a 4,905 total and Jason Belmonte of Australia in third place with 4,836 pins.

All qualifying rounds from the World Series are being covered live on PBA’s Xtra Frame online bowling channel, and via “live scoring” on pba.com. For daily, monthly or yearly subscriptions to Xtra Frame, click on the Xtra Frame link on the pba.com home page. Tuesday’s schedule includes Scorpion Championship qualifying squads at 8 a.m. and 2 p.m PT, and the top 24 semifinal round starting at 7:30 p.m.

川添奨太 97位、Robert Lee 115位、吉田文啓 117位、Pat Nolan 123位、小林哲也 130位、吉田樹弐亜 168位、斉藤茂雄 194位。

　【JPBA】　第7回 900オープンプロアマフェスティバル　【承認大会】

小林孝至　優勝！

先日の10/4（金）・5（土）に900グループタイヨーパークレーン（兵庫）で開催されました第7回900オープンプロアマフェスティバルにて、小林孝至が優勝致しました。

予選では西村 了がパーフェクトを達成するなどレベルの高い戦いが繰り広げられ、小林・吉田文啓のプロ2名、斉藤茂雄を倒した吉岡勝清選手の三つ巴による決勝シュートアウト・優勝決定戦は、小林が256ピンのハイゲームで勝ち抜き、勝者の座を手に入れました。

　【PBA】　Viper Championship　【Round of 24】

Ciminelli Strikes in 10th of Final Game to Capture No. 1 Berth for PBA Viper Championship Stepladder Finals

Ryan Ciminelli of Cheektowaga, N.Y., with a strike in the 10th frame of his final game Sunday, captured the top berth for the Professional Bowlers Association’s Viper Championship presented by PBA Bowling Challenge at South Point Bowling Center.

The Viper Championship is the second of five PBA Tour events that compose the PBA World Series of Bowling V.

Ciminelli, who won his only PBA Tour title in the 2011 Earl Anthony Memorial, battled for the lead all day, but didn’t make the move into first place until the final frame of his 14th game. His 268 final game gave him a total of 3,244 pins – a 231.71 average – and the lead by 18 pins over Chris Barnes of Double Oak, Texas. England’s Stuart Williams finished third and Australia’s Jason Belmonte earned the fourth berth in the Nov. 2 Viper finals with a 3,178 total, 32 pins ahead of D.J. Archer of Friendswood, Texas, who rolled the only 300 of the Viper event in the final game.

“Considering how demanding the lane conditions were, I threw a lot of strikes,” Ciminelli said. “The lanes were just downright tough, especially after the high scores we had Saturday (in the Cheetah Championship).

“The first three games today, I had the pocket, but I couldn’t knock pins over. I figured the day was going to be short, just like it was Saturday. But I changed balls and the pins started falling. It didn’t matter if I hit the pocket light, heavy, whatever. As long as I kept my feet slow and got the ball out on the lane, everything fell into place.”

NFL all-pro wide receiver Terrell Owens, who is making is professional bowling debut in the World Series, averaged 145.71 on the Viper lane condition Sunday.

“Bad day,” he said. “It’s frustrating because I know I can do better, but it’s all a learning process. I’m a competitive person. I’m not going to give up.”

All qualifying rounds from the World Series are being covered live on PBA’s Xtra Frame online bowling channel, and via “live scoring” on pba.com. For daily, monthly or yearly subscriptions to Xtra Frame, click on the Xtra Frame link on the pba.com home page.

日本から参戦の川添奨太は準決勝進出 7位で$3,000獲得。
斉藤茂雄 46位、吉田文啓 72位、小林哲也 90位、Robert Lee 127位、吉田樹弐亜 171位、Pat Nolan 185位。

　【PBA】　Cheetah Championship　【Round of 24】

Two 300s Help Bohn Top Cheetah Championship Field

Guerrero Becomes Third Woman to Reach TV Finals

Defending Professional Bowlers Association World Champion Parker Bohn III of Jackson, N.J., rolled a pair of 300 games Saturday on his way to earning the top qualifying position for the PBA Cheetah Championship finals at South Point Bowling Center while Colombia native Clara Guerrero became the third woman in PBA history to qualify for a nationally-televised stepladder final.

The Cheetah Championship is the first of five tournaments on the PBA World Series of Bowling V program which continues through Nov. 3.

Bohn, who won the 2012 World Championship during PBA World Series of Bowling IV, fired his 91st and 92nd career 300 games (one behind all-time leader Walter Ray Williams Jr., who has 93 perfect games in PBA competition) for a 14-game total of 3,503 pins and a 250.21 average. The 33-time PBA Tour champion won the top berth in the Cheetah stepladder finals by 49 pins over fellow PBA Hall of Famer and 37-time Tour champion Pete Weber of St. Ann, Mo. Wes Malott of Pflugerville, Texas, the 2013 U.S. Open champion, qualified third with 3,452 pins and Guerrero finished her climb from 10th place to claim the fourth berth in the finals with a 3,446 total.

Guerrero will join Kelly Kulick of Union, N.J., and Liz Johnson of Cheektowaga, N.Y., as the third woman to reach the championship round of a PBA Tour event. Kulick went on to win the 2010 PBA Tournament of Champions to become the only woman to capture a PBA Tour title.

The Cheetah Championship finals will be conducted on Saturday, Nov. 2, on lanes installed in South Point’s Exhibition Hall B and will air on ESPN on Sunday, Dec. 1, at 1 p.m. ET.

Bohn, who started the semifinal round in fifth place, found his comfort zone and ran away from the field.

“I don’t have many issues with the Cheetah lane condition,” Bohn said. “My speed allowed me to play it comfortably. The lanes were a little tighter than they were in practice, but once I got my speed dialed in, the ball did what it was supposed to do.

“I’m very, very happy,” he added. “Now I get to bowl one game for the title, which is always a good thing. Even better, I’m way ahead of last year when I didn’t have one top 16 finish in any of the animal pattern events, but I still won the World Championship.”

Guerrero’s charge out of 10th place was a surprise to everyone but her. Earlier in the day, she became the second woman in the five-year history of PBA World Series competition to finish among the top 24 in the 238-player, male-dominated event. Kulick finished 15th in the 2010 Shark Championship, seventh in the 2011 Chameleon Championship and 21st in the 2012 Viper Championship. Guerrero also joined an elite group of women who have won a PBA Regional title when she won her first PBA Southwest Region title in Austin, Texas, last October.

“It would be very nice to win a title here, too,” she smiled. “I’d like to finish history the right way.”

Guerrero started her final seven-game round with a 189 game, an ominous total in the high-scoring Cheetah contest, but followed with games of 244, 289, 213, 267, 278 and 277 to complete her stunning rally.

“I was a little stiff from the layoff between the first and semifinal rounds, but then I got my rhythm and made better shots,” the former Wichita State University All-American said. “After the 189 start, I didn’t think I could make it, but after a couple of big games, I saw I had a chance and in the last couple of games, I really went for it. Things came my way. I finished strong. It was great.”

Guerrero, who has been a member of Colombia’s national bowling team since 1995 when she qualified at age 13, is now a U.S. citizen, married and living in Pflugerville, Texas.

Earlier Saturday, National Football League all-pro wide receiver Terrell Owens made his professional bowling PBA debut in the Cheetah Championship, and struggled to finish with a 1,178 total, a 168.29 average. But he said he wasn’t terribly disappointed.

“I got better as I bowled,” Owens said. “I had 194 my last game, which was decent, and I didn’t come in last.

“These are best bowlers in the world. By no means did I expect to come in here and crush the lanes,” Owens added. “Obviously I have a lot of learning to do. But tomorrow is another day and I can only get better.”

World Series competition continues Sunday with the Viper Championship presented by PBA Bowling Challenge. Qualifying squads will bowl seven games at 8 a.m. and 2 p.m. PT, with the top 24 advancing to the seven-game semifinal round at 7:30 p.m. The final two animal pattern events – the Chameleon and Scorpion Championships – will be held on Monday and Tuesday, respectively.

All qualifying rounds from the World Series are being covered live on PBA’s Xtra Frame online bowling channel, and via “live scoring” on pba.com. For daily, monthly or yearly subscriptions to Xtra Frame, click on the Xtra Frame link on the pba.com home page.

日本から参戦の吉田文啓は予選通過ライン次点 25位で$800獲得。
小林哲也 56位、Pat Nolan 73位、Robert Lee 133位、川添奨太 148位、斉藤茂雄 176位、吉田樹弐亜 183位

　【JPBA】　ROUND1 Cup Ladies　【決勝】

名和 秋、悲願の公式トーナメント初優勝！

サイレントビューティーは返上？はしゃいで泣いて、喜び爆発！

東海女子での姫路 麗、男子新人戦の高良宏也、そして直近の千葉OPでの呉竹博之と、近頃レーンの神様は無欲な者がお気に入りらしく、このROUND1CupLadies2013でも、神様は一番無欲で臨んだ者を勝者に選びました。

予選・準決勝の16Gを投げ、決勝ラウンドロビン進出12名のうち阿部聖水・松永裕美・川口富美恵・中谷優子・名和 秋・吉田真由美・長縄多禧子・西村美紀・小林あゆみ・大山由里香ら10名は現シードプロ、残る2名も1人は優勝経験を持つ佐藤美香、1人は今季デビューの新人ながらプロ入り直前まで全日本ナショナルチームで活躍していた山田弥佳の顔ぶれが出揃いました。

全員が優勝候補の強豪によるラウンドロビンは混迷を極め、1位進出の阿部が中盤から脱落。中谷、山田も圏内に踏みとどまれず、ただ一人2桁白星を挙げた大山、中盤からじりじりと上がってきた西村と名和が入れ替わり、2010年大会チャンピオンの松永、2011年大会の川口が席を守って決勝ステップラダー進出を果たしました。

ファイナリスト5名中、名和以外の全員がレギュラーツアー優勝経験者とあって、5位決定戦でまずは西村と対戦する名和は、緊張から手を震わせながら勉強するつもりで行こうと臨みます。

しかし名和にとって一つめのラッキーは、TV決勝レーンが予選でパーフェクトを出したレーンでもあり、白星スタートのラウンドロビン1G目と同じだったこと。さらに折り返しの6G目でも投球してコンディションを掴めていた為、対戦相手の西村が苦戦する一方でスコアをまとめてまず一勝を挙げました。

続いて4位決定戦、川口との対戦は名和が徐々に自分のラインを作って中盤4連続ストライクに成功。3位決定戦では松永と終盤までもつれ込む接戦を演じましたが、松永の10フレーム1投目が10番ピンを残してしまい、これが二つめのラッキーとなって名和を優勝決定戦へと押し上げます。

昨年の大会でやはりトップシードで進出しながら敗北しており、自分自身へのリベンジとなる大山との優勝決定戦は、ターキーで滑り出した名和がリードを取ります。

大山も中盤にターキーを決めて名和にワンマークまで差を詰めますが、勝負どころの9フレーム目で6・10番ピンを残してスペア。対する名和は9フレーム目、10フレーム1投目とストライクを繋ぎ、これが勝敗の分かれ道となって2投目の7本カウントで優勝を確定させました。

ウィニング投球の為に順番を止められた時点で自身の優勝を知り、それからは優勝インタビューが気になって泣く余裕もなかったという名和。強豪達を相手に勝つことよりも勉強するつもりで挑んできたその無欲さを神様に愛されて、2004年の新人戦以来9年ぶりにして念願のレギュラーツアー初優勝を女子大会最高優勝金額を誇るこのビッグタイトルで成し遂げました！　

阿部聖水、ナインテントーナメント制覇！

本大会でも6位入賞！

決勝ステップラダーに先駆けて、ROUND1CUP恒例ナインテントーナメントのTVファイナルが行われ、選手も見守る観客も大興奮のこのトーナメントを、今年は阿部聖水が制しました！

瞬発力と集中力が物を言う9・10フレームの最小4投、最大でも5投でスコアを競う勝ち抜きトーナメントで、進 博美を倒した阿部と姫路 麗に勝利した吉川朋絵が優勝決定戦で激突。両者同ピンからのワンショットプレーオフにもつれ込み、2投目で阿部がストライク、吉川が9ピンで終了。阿部が優勝賞金40万円を獲得しました！

　【JPBA】　ROUND1 Cup Ladies　【ラウンドロビン】

大山由里香

昨年大会のトップシード大山由里香（最終順位2位）が今年もラウンドロビンで圧倒的な強さを見せトップシードでTV決勝へ！また2位も昨年大会に続き2位進出の松永裕美（最終順位3位）、'11大会優勝者の川口富美恵が3位、昨年大会4位の西村美紀が4位、そしてポジションマッチ234で勝った名和 秋が5位で進出を果たす。次点は昨年に続き阿部聖水。

　【JPBA】　ROUND1 Cup Ladies　【準決勝】

阿部聖水

　【JPBA】　ROUND1 Cup Ladies　【予選後半】

阿部聖水

　【JPBA】　ROUND1 Cup Ladies　【予選前半】

山田弥佳

　【WBT】　World Bowling Tour Thailand

Sean Rash Tops Mika Koivuniemi to Win World Bowling Tour Thailand Title

Reigning Professional Bowlers Association Player of the Year Sean Rash of Montgomery, Ill., defeated top qualifier Mika Koivuniemi, a Finnish native now living in Hartland, Mich., 235-225, 245-228, to win the World Bowling Tour Thailand title Monday at Blu-O Paragon Bowling Center.

With the win, Rash claimed his seventh career PBA Tour title, his second World Tenpin Bowling Association/PBA International Tour title during the 2012-13 season, and a first prize worth US$32,140. Rash’s previous 2012-13 title was in the Kuwait Open, where he also defeated Koivuniemi for the title, but this time, because Koivuniemi entered the eight-player stepladder finals as the top qualifier, Rash had to beat him twice.

Koivuniemi was trying for his fourth WTBA/PBA International Tour title of the year. Earlier in October, he captured his 11th PBA Tour title in the Columbia 300 Vienna Open in Austria.

Rash and Koivuniemi may meet again in the World Bowling Tour Men’s Finals, presented by the PBA, which will be conducted Nov. 3 as part of the PBA’s ESPN television finals at South Point in Las Vegas. Rash will enter the WBT Men’s Finals as top qualifier and will meet the winner of the preliminary match between No. 2 Koivuniemi and No. 3 Mike Fagan of Fort Worth, Texas. The WBT Women’s Finals field will include No. 1 Kelly Kulick, Union, N.J.; No. 2 Liz Johnson, Cheektowaga, N.Y., and defending women’s champion Missy Parkin, Laguna Hills, Calif.

In the first three-player, shootout match in Bangkok, Thailand’s Phoemphun Yakasem rolled a 256 game to advance over Korea’s Kim Young Kwan (211) and Ryan Ciminelli of Cheektowaga, N.Y. (193).

In the second three-player match, Hong Kong’s Michael Mak (238) eliminated Mike Fagan of Fort Worth, Texas (182) and Yakasem (169). Mak then eliminated the only woman to finish in the top eight, Singapore’s Daphne Tan, 258-211, but Mak’s title hopes ended when he lost to Rash in the semifinal match, 242-219.

The WBT Thailand event was the final tournament prior to PBA World Series of Bowling V, which gets underway with the PBA Cheetah Championship Saturday at South Point Bowling Center in Las Vegas. All preliminary qualifying and match play rounds during WSOB V will be webcast live, exclusively on PBA’s online bowling channel, Xtra Frame. For one-day, monthly or yearly subscription information, click on the Xtra Frame link on PBA’s official website, pba.com.

　【JPBA】　コカ・コーラカップ 千葉オープンボウリングトーナメント　【決勝】

呉竹博之、初優勝・初タイトル！

千葉OP恒例、勝利のコーラ一気飲み！

3つのパーフェクト、4つの800シリーズが達成され、ナインコール続出のハイスコア合戦となった今年の千葉オープン。どの選手も1ピンでも多く倒し、1つでも上の順位を目指して真剣勝負を繰り広げましたが、そんな中で呉竹博之は周囲のペースに巻き込まれず、ひたすら投げ抜くことに集中していました。

というのも、2週間前に左足首の靱帯を負傷して大会当日まで治療に専念していた呉竹は、大会中もセンター近くの整骨院に通って体調維持に努めており、途中で棄権だけは避けたいと綱渡りのような状況だっただけに、加熱する一方のハイスコア合戦には加われません。

それでも呉竹は13位とまずまずの成績で予選を通過。続く準決勝でも浮き沈みの激しいなかを5位で通過し、決勝ラウンドロビンへ進出します。

ラウンドロビンではトップを争っていたジョン・テハとディフェンディングチャンピオンの山本 勲が勝ち星を伸ばせずじりじりと順位を落として行く一方、アマチュア時代に公式トーナメント優勝経験を持つ新星・藤井信人が躍り出ます。しかし中盤4G目から順位を上げる呉竹がポジションマッチで勝利してトップシードを奪取。呉竹と藤井、そしてトップから陥落しながらも踏み止まったジョン・テハの3名による決勝ステップラダーに突入しました。

3位決定戦はダブルで滑り出したもののジョン・テハが左レーンに捕まってストライクが続かなくなると、前半4連続ストライクの貯金を活かして藤井がリードを取り、スプリットからオープンフレームを2度出しつつもそのまま逃げ切って呉竹との優勝決定戦へと進みます。

互いに初優勝を賭けた対戦、しかもかたやプロ入り半年足らずの新人とあって、プロ入り10年目で初タイトルに臨む呉竹はプライドに賭けて何が何でも勝ちたいところ、と思われますが、先に述べた通り呉竹の目標は優勝よりも「最後まで投げる」こと。優勝決定戦でもその姿勢はぶれず、気負いの無さが功を奏してか2フレーム目から5連続ストライクに成功。対する藤井は先ほどのジョンと同じく左レーンに捕まり、またしても2度のオープンを出してしまいます。

呉竹は手足が攣りながらまさに満身創痍の状態で終盤の数フレームを投球。藤井もターキーで追いますが10フレーム1投目で6・10番ピンを残し、呉竹の勝利が確定します。

昨年の東海で初優勝を逃しましたが、勝利の女神にその無欲さを愛された呉竹、千葉で嬉しい初優勝を成し遂げました！　

　【JPBA】　コカ・コーラカップ 千葉オープンボウリングトーナメント　【ラウンドロビン】

呉竹博之

ポジションマッチ217-184でジョン・テハに勝った呉竹博之が初優勝を目指しトップシードで決勝ステップラダーへ！

アマ時代2010年の「第1回フィランスロピー」で総合優勝を果たしている新人藤井信人がプロとして初タイトルを目指し2位、そして3位でジョン・テハが進出を果たす。

　【JPBA】　コカ・コーラカップ 千葉オープンボウリングトーナメント　【準決勝】

ジョン・テハ

準決勝第1シリーズで矢島純一（802=246･289･267）・ジョン・テハ（821=275･248･298）、第2シリーズで日置秀一（801=268･268･265）が800シリーズ達成！

　【JPBA】　コカ・コーラカップ 千葉オープンボウリングトーナメント　【予選後半】

山本　勲

ディフェンディングチャンピオン山本 勲がトップで準決勝へ、千葉オープン4勝目を目指す！

2G目に新人の藤井信人、11G目に森口卓哉が300達成、予選第2ｼシリーズに玉井慎一郎が800シリーズﾞ（825=279･256･290）達成！

　【JPBA】　コカ・コーラカップ 千葉オープンボウリングトーナメント　【予選前半】

玉井慎一郎

2G目に新人の藤井信人が大会1号の300達成、また予選第2ｼシリーズに玉井慎一郎が800シリーズﾞ（825=279･256･290）達成！

　【JPBA】　コカ・コーラカップ 千葉オープンボウリングトーナメント　【選抜大会】

相澤英昭

　【JPBA】　第4回 JLBC選手権軽井沢プリンスカップ　【承認大会】

佐藤まさみ、優勝！

10/3（木）・4（金）の2日間にわたり、軽井沢プリンスボウルで開催されました承認大会・第4回JLBC選手権軽井沢プリンスカップにて、佐藤まさみが優勝しましたのでご報告致します。

アマチュア部門ではダブルス戦やベーカー方式のチーム戦などが行われ、プロ部門では1位の佐藤と2位の小林よしみが1ピン差の接戦を演じるなど、和気藹々としたなかにも盛り上がる大会となりました。

　【JPBA】　SUNBRIDGE CUP プロボウリング男子新人戦　【決勝ラウンドロビン】

高良宏也がタイトル奪取！

沖縄の青い空が良く似合う笑顔でバンザイ！（稼いだ米は100kg以上？）

プロデビューから3年間しか狙えない貴重なタイトルに加えて予選では各ゲーム毎のHG賞が設けられるなど、いつにもまして盛り上がりを見せた今年のSUNBRIDGE CUPプロボウリング男子新人戦。

準決勝6Gでは高良宏也が予選から首位を守り抜き、その後に同じく予選上位の荒井慎太郎と三浦啓寛が続き、山川尚晴・加藤隆広・藤井信人ら今年デビューの52期生達と昨年アマチュアながら大会制覇を成し遂げた山本優介選手が脱落。一方で中山洋一・浜田祐也・神谷昇司とアマチュアの鶴見亮剛 選手、川原慎也 選手が順位を上げて決勝ラウンドロビンへと進出を決めました。

8名による総当たり戦の決勝ラウンドロビンは、マッチゲームの勝利ポイントに加えてスコアから200ピンを引いた残りもポイント加算される為、200ピン以上を打てば負けてもポイントを伸ばせる一方、200ピン以下ならポイントからマイナスされるとあって、スコアを落とさないことが重要になりますが、鶴見選手と神谷、中山らがこのマイナスポイントに苦しめられて順位を上げることが出来ません。

トップを行く高良が中盤で敗北が重なり、スコアも伸びず足踏み状態になると、ぴったりと2位につけていた荒井がその差を詰めて来ます。「優勝が見え始めて欲が出て来たらスコアが伸びなくなった」と語った高良は、ここで気持ちを切り替えて復活。後半でまたスコアを伸ばし、最終順位を確定するポジションマッチの時点で荒井を127ポイント差まで引き離します。

荒井が98ピン以上の差を付けて高良に勝利できれば優勝、高良は204ピン以上を打てば勝敗に関係なく優勝という状況で、二度目の対戦は両者スペアでスタート。続く2フレーム目も二人揃ってオープンにしますが、3フレーム目から高良はターキー。ストライクが続かない荒井が慎重にスペアを拾いますが、8フレーム目に再びオープンを出しながらも貯金で逃げ切った形となり、高良の優勝が確定しました。

沖縄在住で思うようには大会に参加できない為に、この新人戦に的を絞り、1ヶ月前から自身の勤めるセンターでレーンコンディションを作って練習してきたという高良、新人戦ラストチャンスの今年、みごと初優勝・初タイトルを果たしました！ 　

　【JPBA】　SUNBRIDGE CUP プロボウリング男子新人戦　【準決勝】

高良宏也

　【JPBA】　SUNBRIDGE CUP プロボウリング男子新人戦　【予選】

高良宏也

　【JPBA】　シーズントライアル 2013 オータムシリーズ

永野すばる
会場：田町ハイレーン

　【JPBA】　シーズントライアル 2013 オータムシリーズ

小原照之
会場：新狭山グランドボウル

　【JPBA】　シーズントライアル 2013 オータムシリーズ

岩切稔純
会場：星ヶ丘ボウル

　【JPBA】　シーズントライアル 2013 オータムシリーズ

柴田英徳
会場：小嶺シティボウル

　【JPBA】　KAMEI CUP Special Team Challenge　【承認大会】

柳 美穂チームが優勝！

9/28（土）に相模原パークレーンズ（神奈川）にて開催されました承認大会・KAMEI CUP Special Team Challengeにて、柳 美穂チームが優勝致しました。

承認大会では珍しくプロ1名・アマチュア6名の7人チーム戦が行われ、ベーカー方式の決勝トーナメントで柳チームと小林あゆみチームが激突。178ピン対232ピンの大差を付けて柳チームが圧勝しました。

　【PBA】　Columbia 300 Vienna Open

Koivuniemi Wins Columbia 300 Vienna Open for Third 2012-13 PBA Title

The 2012-13 Professional Bowlers Association Player of the Year race got even more interesting Sunday when Mika Koivuniemi, a Finnish native now living in Hartland, Mich., won his third PBA International Tour title of the season, defeating fellow Finn Pasi Uotila, 258-237, in the title match of the Columbia 300 Vienna Open at Plus Bowling Center.

With his win, Koivuniemi became the first PBA Tour player to win three titles – all on foreign soil – during the 2012-13 season. He previously won the Round1 Japan Cup followed by the Qatar Open in back-to-back World Tenpin Bowling Association/PBA International Tour events in December 2012. Jason Belmonte, Australia (Bear Open and USBC Masters) and Scott Norton, Mission Viejo, Calif. (Chameleon Open and Earl Anthony PBA Players Championship), are the only other multiple title winners this season with two each.

Koivuniemi, who owns 12 PBA Tour titles, also moved into second place in the WTBA’s World Bowling Tour men’s points standings and won a 7,000 Euro first prize (est. US$9,500) to take the 2012-13 PBA Tour earnings lead with $172,312 (roughly $3,500 ahead of Belmonte).

The Vienna Open was the next-to-last World Bowling Tour qualifying event heading into the PBA World Series of Bowling. With his victory, Koivuniemi earned 50 WBT points and now ranks second with 534 points, trailing leader Sean Rash of Montgomery, Ill., who has 563 points after picking up 23 points for his seventh-place finish in Vienna. Trailing Koivuniemi and Rash on the men’s points list are Mike Fagan of Fort Worth, Texas (506); Tommy Jones of Simpsonville, S.C. (494); Chris Barnes of Double Oak, Texas (491), and Belmonte (477).

The top three men and top three women on the WBT’s rolling two-year competition points list will earn berths in the WBT Finals presented by the PBA, which will be held on Nov. 3 as the final event on the PBA World Series of Bowling V program. The top three WBT women have clinched berths. Kelly Kulick of Union, N.J., is the leader with 647 points followed by Liz Johnson, Cheektowaga, N.Y. (555) and Missy Parkin, Laguna Hills, Calif. (539).

The final WTBA/PBA International Tour tournament and final WBT qualifying event leading into the PBA World Series of Bowling V will be the WBT Thailand which will be held Oct. 14-21 at Bul-O Paragon in Bangkok, Thailand. WBT points at stake begin at 50, 40, 35, 30 and 25 for the top five players, respectively, with lesser points awarded based upon where players finish.

WSOB V is set for Oct. 25-Nov. 3 at South Point Bowling Center in Las Vegas. The WBT Men’s and Women’s Finals will be held on Nov. 3. Finalists in each gender division will bowl for $20,000, $10,000 and $5,000 prizes.

Seven PBA Tour titles remain to be decided during the 2012-13 season: the WBT Thailand, four animal pattern championships (Cheetah, Viper, Chameleon and Scorpion) plus the PBA World Championship during WSOB V, and the season-ending Round1 Japan Cup in Tokyo.

　【JPBA】　2013 東海フィランスロピートーナメント　【承認大会】

宮城鈴菜が優勝！

9/28（土）に名古屋グランドボウル（愛知）にて開催されました承認大会・2013東海フィランスロピートーナメントにて、宮城鈴菜が優勝致しました。

東日本大震災復興チャリティーと銘打たれた今大会は、参加費の一部がチャリティー金とされた他、スプリット以外の残りピンを倒せなかったらチャリティー募金を行うという特別ルールも加わり、たくさんの募金を頂いたうえに場内は大変な盛り上がりとなりました。

予選では4個のパーフェクトが達成されるなど、ハイレベルな戦いを勝ち抜いてトップシードで決勝ステップラダーに進出を決めた宮城。続いて愛知の秘蔵っ子・鮫島 蓮選手、鈴木　元司が進出。3位決定戦で鮫島選手を下した鈴木と宮城の優勝決定戦となり、地元の大声援を背負った宮城が初代チャンピオンの座に輝きました。

　【JPBA】　AGATACUP 第9回 240★ボウリングトーナメント　【承認大会】

石川直子選手　優勝！

さる9/14（土）、西尾スターボウル（愛知）にて承認大会・AGATACUP第9回240★ボウリングトーナメントが開催され、石川直子選手が優勝されましたのでご報告致します。

予選8Gに続いて行われた決勝トーナメントで、石川選手は中野洋子・森西義治らを次々撃破。糸山賀津人との優勝決定戦を6ピン差でかわし、大会初の女性アマチュア選手による優勝を成し遂げました。